It’s not looking great for The Runner.
The new PG-13 film has barely made it out of the starting blocks, and critics are already lining up to tell audiences to stay home.
The review embargo lifted on Wednesday morning, giving critics their first chance to publicly weigh in on the film. So far, the response has been brutally negative, with The Runner earning a 7% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 28 reviews.
That puts the film firmly in “rotten” territory, and it doesn’t look like audiences are exactly rushing to its defence either.
The film currently sits at a 42% “rotten” score from users on Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter, based on more than 50 reviews.
Still, there’s plenty of room for those numbers to move.
Rotten Tomatoes has yet to publish its official Critics Consensus, Audience Summary or Popcornmeter score based specifically on verified user ratings, so the current figures aren’t necessarily where the film will ultimately land.
For now, though, The Runner is facing an uphill battle.
With a cast that also includes Damian Lewis and Rory Wilmot, the film had some recognisable names behind it, but early reviews suggest that hasn’t been enough to get critics on board.
A 7% score this early is hardly the kind of word-of-mouth a film wants.
Particularly when audiences are already giving it a similarly frosty reception.
Whether The Runner can turn things around as more reviews and audience reactions arrive remains to be seen, but right now, its Rotten Tomatoes page is looking considerably more brutal than the title suggests.
